A Psychiatrist's Bizarre Game Journey / Dream of the Mist

So casual!

Chen Tian couldn't help but mutter to himself, "These guys probably never really thought anyone would actually make it this far through the trials! So they think it's no big deal to just add a little more difficulty?"

Then why did they even set up this trial? Wouldn't it have been better to just isolate themselves from the world?

"Um... by the way, who are the people who have passed this trial over the past few hundred years?"

Chen Tian pressed for an answer.

Andrei recalled for a moment, then counted on his fingers and said, "Let me think, three hundred years ago there was a human who called himself a hero, a hundred years ago there was a guy who said he was some kind of sword saint... Hmm, it seems like there aren't any others."

Chen Tian smirked – wait, these two sound incredibly powerful. They've reached this point and still need to come here to ask these angels for help? Are the average combat strength of the angels stronger than that of heroes or sword saints? That's unlikely, isn't it?

The main problem is that this guy doesn't seem that strong.

After walking for a while, Chen Tian finally followed Andre out of the area. As soon as they stepped outside, they saw another angelic man waiting there. Upon seeing Andre and Chen Tian, ​​he hurried over, first apologizing to Chen Tian, ​​then quickly pulling Andre aside and beginning to speak in hushed tones.

There was definitely something wrong here. Chen Tian immediately pricked up his ears, secretly made a little hand seal, and began to eavesdrop.

The angelic man who had been waiting there grabbed Andrei, looking helpless and speechless, and scolded, "Andrei! What are you doing, Andrei! Didn't I tell you to find a reason to say she failed the trial and let her leave? Why did you let her in anyway?!"

Andrei was also getting annoyed: "You have the nerve to talk back to me! If your excuse hadn't been so lame, and she hadn't rejected it so easily, things wouldn't have come to this. Don't you think about it? I gave her an excuse, and she rejected it the moment I said it, so I quickly came up with another excuse to refuse—wasn't that too obvious? It's clear I didn't want her to pass. A little manipulation is fine, but being this blatant... that's against the rules!"

"So what if it's against the rules? Don't you even know what time it is? Don't you know that ever since that sword saint took away a bunch of powerful members of our clan a hundred years ago, besides the clan leader, who in our clan can fight anymore? Let's not talk about anything else, just take that trial for example, can you pass it or can I pass it?"

The angelic man lowered his voice in exasperation and said, "What if her request to the clan leader is similar to that sword saint's—that we choose someone to go out with her and assist her in doing something... then we're doomed! The clan leader just announced a proclamation this morning saying that a disaster has broken out outside and that we must be extremely careful and not go out. And now you've let someone in! What am I supposed to say to you?!"

After being thoroughly berated, Andrei could only angrily give up and spread his hands: "Then what do you suggest? Anyway, I've already brought her in. What I did was in accordance with the rules, and the clan chief can't reprimand or punish me. Your scolding me here won't do any good."

Chen Tian scratched his cheek. Goodness, I knew it! I thought Andrei wasn't very strong, and it turns out he really wasn't!

"You bastard! You've ruined the entire clan!"

Seeing Andrei's complete surrender, the angelic man was so angry that he turned and left.

Andrei grumbled unhappily, "Tsk, all he does is blame me. He clearly has his own problems but he washes his hands of it all. When something goes wrong, instead of trying to solve the problem, he's here offering hindsight advice, blaming this person and that person. I told him from the beginning to just let him handle it, but he wouldn't..."

Chen Tian awkwardly looked away. It seemed that the angel race was just a race, with no so-called divinity. Apart from their appearance and power, they were not much different from humans in essence.

After calming himself down, Andrei walked back, greeted Chen Tian, ​​and told Chen Tian to follow him.

"What just happened? I saw you two seemed to be arguing?"

Chen Tian, ​​feigning ignorance, asked.

“It’s nothing serious. That guy just has a problem. He’s always like this; he can’t stand not having a fight with someone. We don’t need to worry about him. I’ll take you to the clan chief now.”

Andrei replied with a pursed lip.

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642. The Real Secret

Soon, led by Andrei, Chen Tian arrived at the house where the Angel Clan Chief resided.

Seemingly due to some rule, Andrei simply stood at the door, knocked, and announced that Chen Tian had arrived. Then, a voice came from inside inviting Chen Tian to come in, while Andrei could only wait outside.

Chen Tian was slightly puzzled and couldn't help but become wary. So he quietly threw a folded piece of talisman behind Andrei, and the talisman automatically adhered to it. This was a teleportation talisman. As long as Chen Tian activated the other talisman in his hand, he would be immediately teleported to the location of this talisman.

After doing all this, Chen Tian entered the Angel Clan Chief's house.

As expected, the atmosphere inside the room was extremely strange. As soon as Chen Tian entered the room, he was unable to see the patriarch's face. He had to go through a winding corridor to reach the angel patriarch.

Chen Tian really didn't understand. Why would a perfectly good house have a corridor right at the entrance? The design was just bizarre.

The room was brightly lit, but it had a gloomy feel to it. The candlelight shone on Chen Tian, ​​but it did not bring him any warmth.

After walking for a while, Chen Tiancai finally arrived in front of the Angel Clan Chief.

At first glance, Chen Tian understood why the house was designed this way, and also why Andrei was not allowed to come in.

The lower half of the angel clan chief sitting on the main seat had already transformed into some indescribable substance, as if it had melted, and lay sprawled on the ground like a liquid, clinging tightly to the ground as if it had taken root, and was still wriggling incessantly.

His arms and body, exposed outside his robes, were covered with gray-black lines, as if something beneath his skin was eager to burst out.

Only the head remained, and it looked normal, showing no abnormalities.

To be honest, the moment Chen Tian saw this guy, he almost subconsciously activated the talisman.

However, seeing that the other party did not seem to make a move immediately, and there might still be room for communication, Chen Tian did not run away right away.

However, he was holding the talisman tightly in his hand.

"Human, you are the one who passed my race's trial, aren't you?"

The angel clan chief spoke up—his voice was deep and hoarse, accompanied by a strange "sizzling" sound that was both jarring and unsettling. However, he didn't wait for Chen Tian's reply and continued to speak to himself: "Since you passed that trial, you should be able to see that the energy emanating from those monsters in the trial actually comes from the same source as the aura emanating from my body right now."

Chen Tian didn't understand, but he nodded anyway.

The angel clan chief was silent for a moment, then suddenly changed the subject and began to recount the old story of how monsters invaded the angel clan's territory hundreds of years ago and tried to seize his body. In general... it was not much different from the version that Chen Tian had heard from Andre, except for many more details.

After finishing his explanation, he paused before continuing, "In fact, I didn't escape unscathed from that crisis. That monster almost succeeded. As you can see, my body was infected by that energy, and for hundreds of years I've tried everything to stop the infection from worsening. Now I'm in this state. I imagine it won't be long before..."

He didn't continue speaking, but the meaning behind his words was self-evident.

Chen Tian frowned slightly, seemingly having some guesses in his mind, but still pretended not to know and asked, "Why are you telling me all this?"

"..."

The clan chief remained silent for a long while before speaking as if he had made up his mind: "I am very sorry that you came to me through the trials, but I cannot provide you with the help you want. Instead, I need you to do things for me... But this is my only request. Please help me."

Chen Tian sensed trouble was coming and pursed his lips: "Please tell me what kind of help you need."

"I hope... that you can lead my people away from this place and find a safe place in the Central Continent to continue living."

The chieftain sighed softly, "The tribe's territory is no longer suitable for survival. After I die, this land will surely produce monsters that are difficult to resist. My people can no longer live here."

Chen Tian frowned slightly and tried to ask a question, but the clan leader continued to speak on his own: "Originally, when my body was contaminated by this energy, I should have stepped down as clan leader and killed or sealed myself away."

But then brave warriors came, requesting to borrow a group of our race's strongest warriors to fight the monsters. I agreed, thinking they would return after the war, at which point I could step down... but none of them returned.

Reluctantly, I have no choice but to continue serving as the clan leader and begin training someone to succeed me. You know, because of our long lifespan, our angel race also has a long growth period.

Centuries passed in the blink of an eye, and a new generation had just grown up when the human sword saint came knocking again. I was already planning to send my people away from our homeland, so I made a pact with him: I would send the strongest members of my tribe to assist him, but once he succeeded, he had to return to my tribe, bring the rest of my people to the Central Continent, and ensure their well-being and safety as an ally of humanity.

But...in the end, not a single member of the tribe returned. I don't know where things went wrong, but there was nothing I could do; I had to continue as chieftain. And so, we've ended up in this situation.

Chen Tian couldn't help but twitch his lips. This guy was really pathetic, wasn't he? He was completely screwed over by the Hero and the Sword Saint. But he also had his own problems. He was too indecisive. Even if he had just abdicated from the beginning, even if it caused some turmoil for the Angel race, it would still be better than ending up in this situation.

When the sword saint came, they could have been more forceful and let the other party take all the clansmen away directly. Instead, they thought of letting some of the clansmen go with him first to see the situation. They wanted to wait for a better price after assisting the other party, hoping to ensure that the clansmen who were taken away would live a better life. Although the starting point was good, it was a bit like losing the big picture for the small thing in such a critical situation.

Chen Tian pressed further, "If I hadn't come here, what would your next plan have been?"

The angel clan chief sighed: "I had already planned to announce this at the next clan meeting and arrange for all clan members to leave the clan territory and head to the Central Continent."

Chen Tian was puzzled: "I still don't understand... why didn't you leave this place and seal yourself away, but instead had your people leave?"

The clan chief shook his head and explained, "It's impossible now. Over such a long period of time, my body has spread underground and is now bound to the entire clan territory. If I die or am sealed away, the entire clan territory will collapse instantly. I can only commit suicide after all the clan members have left."

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643. What does "protagonist" mean?

Chen Tian awkwardly twitched the corner of his mouth. Was he supposed to say that he had only recently arrived in this world? And practically, he had just arrived and then immediately entered that hellish place of trials. Asking him to lead a group of angels to make a living... that was a bit difficult. His understanding of the outside world wasn't as extensive as that of these angels.

But he can't say that now. The angel chieftain clearly sees him as his last hope. He thinks that since he can pass the angel race's trial, his strength must at least have a certain reputation among humans. That's why he hopes that he can give the angel race a good place to go.

But if Chen Tian reveals that he is not from this world, it means he is of no use to the Angel Clan. What difference is there between that and the Angel Clan Chief releasing his people to fend for themselves? The Angel Clan Chief might be devastated upon hearing this, and in despair, he might lose his temper and take his anger out on Chen Tian.

Ugh, this is really difficult.

"Uh, so you're finally going to tell your people about this? Are you sure you can persuade them?"

Chen Tian smiled awkwardly but politely: "I see that your people seem to attribute the decline of the Angel Clan's strength to the fact that some of their strongest members were taken away a hundred years ago and never returned, hence their strong resistance to outsiders who want to take them away..."

The angel chieftain remained silent for a long time before replying, "This is no longer a question of whether it's possible or not. I couldn't hold on for much longer anyway. Even if you hadn't come to the angel territory today, I would have forced them to leave after a while. If we want the angel race to avoid extinction, this is something we must do."

After saying that, before Chen Tian could say anything more, the angel clan chief reached out and shook the bell hanging next to his seat. Immediately afterward, a deep, bell-like sound echoed throughout the angel clan territory.

Soon, alerted and summoned by the noise, all the angels in the entire territory put down what they were doing and gathered around the house where the clan leader was.

Once all the angels had arrived, they stood in neat rows at the entrance of the patriarch's house, awaiting instructions. At that moment, the angel patriarch waved his hand, and the winding corridor that Chen Tian had walked through disappeared, revealing an empty hall.

With another wave of his hand, the wall separating the angel clan chief from the outside disappeared without a trace, revealing him directly to all his clansmen.

The angels outside were shocked to see their patriarch in this state. Although they didn't immediately start asking questions, they all looked at their patriarch and Chen Tian beside him with shocked and puzzled eyes.

With a soft cough, the clan chief's hoarse voice rang out—he didn't waste any words and went straight to telling the truth behind it all.

Although it didn't sound like a complicated matter, it was actually quite a long story. Chen Tian was too lazy to listen again, so he just stood there in a daze, silently thinking to Chen Tian, ​​"Hey, this is your body, don't always make me come out whenever we encounter someone! These dangerous things are one thing, but what if... I mean, what if, while I'm standing up for you, someone else falls for you? Does that mean they like you or me? What will you do then?"

Chen Tian, ​​who was engrossed in her research, couldn't help but roll her eyes upon hearing this: "Aren't you overthinking things? How could such a thing happen... Could it be that you're surprisingly narcissistic? Okay, even if this happens, I'll just figure out a way to create a solidified avatar, and you can possess it and date the other person. You're welcome, it's what I should do."

Chen Tian was speechless: "You! You weren't like this at all when we first met! How come you've become so sarcastic? Is this your true nature being revealed?"

"Please, you're so annoying! We weren't even that close back then, wasn't that behavior normal?"

Chen Tian replied helplessly in a tone that sounded like she was lecturing a fool.

With tears welling up in his eyes, Chen Tian deliberately spoke in a pitiful tone, "I only said a couple of things to you and you already find me annoying? I get it, the feelings have faded, there's no love left."

Even though the image wasn't a physical entity in her mind, Chen Tian couldn't help but get goosebumps and quickly shouted, "Stop! Don't imitate Zhou Ke'er! You're disgusting! Can't you stop learning the bad things instead of the good ones?"

Chen Tian, ​​taking advantage of the situation, went even further: "Fine, when you need someone's help, you call him Dr. Zhou, but now that you don't, you call him that guy. You're so heartless and ungrateful!"

Chen Tian's fist hardened.

Just as they were about to deliver a righteous punishment to Chen Tian, ​​the Angel Clan Chief finished his long speech. All the Angel Clan members were immersed in a somber atmosphere and turned their attention to Chen Tian.

With so many people watching, Chen Tian immediately went limp and retreated into the depths of her consciousness, becoming withdrawn.

Chen Tian also came to his senses, gave an awkward smile, and waved to the angels: "Ha...haha?"

Although the angels were all doubting whether Chen Tian was reliable or not, in the end, there were no dramatic situations like "I'm not leaving, I'm not leaving, I want to live and die with the clan leader." Even though they were in low spirits, they all obeyed the angel clan leader's orders and immediately went back to pack their few belongings.

Seeing that the angels had all left, Chen Tian approached the angel chieftain and whispered, "Hey, how are you going to kill yourself later? Can you bring yourself to do it? Do you need my help?"

This angel clan chief is definitely a special individual. Since he's already determined to die, why not let Chen Tian do it? It'll just be a good way to complete the mission and not waste anything.

Unfortunately, while this idea is good, it still won't work.

The angel clan chief gave Chen Tian a strange look: "After I die, the entire clan territory will collapse along with me. If you make a move, won't you also perish in the clan territory?"

Chen Tian clicked his tongue regretfully. It was just a collapse of another dimension; if he really wanted to escape, he could easily do so. But if he insisted on continuing to make this request, it would make it seem as if he was determined to kill the angel clan chief himself, which felt a bit off, so he had no choice but to give up.

but...

Chen Tian stroked his chin thoughtfully. Upon entering the game, although he still didn't quite understand how it worked, he had effortlessly and inexplicably recruited a group of angels to follow him. A whole bunch of angels at the start... Could he actually be the protagonist?